After That
by ayme28
Summary: Takes place after 3X10 of Anne With an E. Gilbert leaves for Toronto, and Anne goes through hard times. What will happen to the couple? Will the long distance between them strengthen their love, or tear it down? This is my first fan fiction! I would appreciate it if you left a review, and I am always open to constructive criticism! Enjoy :) !
1. The Beginning

"What letter?" Gilbert asked, panic filling his voice. Diana had a confused look on her face, but didn't answer. "Diana, what letter?!" he asked again, louder. Everyone on the train seemed to be looking at him. _Anne_. He had to get to her.

...

Anne turned and ran. She had to get to Gilbert. She didn't have any clue of where he was, but the only thing she saw in her mind was his smiling face. _Gilbert_. If only she hadn't denied her feelings for so long.

Putting on her boots, and stuffing random things into her suitcase, Anne rushed to the door. But as she turned around, it was as if the world had froze. Standing not five feet away from her was Gilbert Blythe. He was there. And he was looking at _her_ the way Anne had always hoped someone would_._ Was it possible? Was it possible that someone could look at her like that? It was like something out of Princess Cordelia's life. Anne couldn't speak. She dropped her suitcase to the ground and walked slowly towards him. Was this a dream? If it was, Anne wasn't sure she wanted to wake up.

...

_Anne_. Her beautiful teal dress swished slightly in the wind as Anne walked towards him. He wanted to call out to her, but he couldn't open his mouth. Her slightly curled red hair framed her pale face. Anne would call it horrid, but to Gilbert her fiery hair was breathtaking. He realized it now. He had loved Anne ever since he tugged on her braids, then called her "carrots" and when she smashed that slate over his head. If it had been under different circumstances, Gilbert surely would have laughed.

She was right in front of him now. Gilbert's heart was beating so hard he thought that surely Anne could've heard it. Slowly, he reached out to Anne, placing a hand on her freckled cheek. Without realizing it, he pressed his lips to hers. His heart pounded even harder as she kissed him back.

Gilbert had to make sure. He needed to know. "Anne, do you truly have feelings for me?"

It was as if no words were needed. One look into her eyes and he knew the answer. Joy filled his heart. And then, oh, _she_ was kissing him. Everything had melted away as their lips met for the second time. He wished they could stay like this forever. Holding each other until the end of existence, but reality came back as Gilbert he heard the bell begin to toll.

"Twelve, I have to go." Gilbert sighed.

Anne tried to bury her disappointment as she asked, "But you just got here. Where are you going?".

"Toronto. U of T!" Gilbert grinned. It wasn't his usual smile though. It broke his heart that he would have to be away from Anne.

**...**

_U of T? But that was so far away! _"Alright, then. So goodbye?" Anne half asked, half stated. She was happy for him, she was, but she couldn't help wishing that he could stay here with her. No. Anne would not think like that. Gilbert would be fulfilling his dreams!

Gilbert had a torn look on his face, but he reached down to grab Anne's hands and kissed them gingerly. "Penpals?"

Anne laughed. "I recall that I happen to have a very nice fountain pen!" Gilbert grinned back at her, but then his smile faltered.

"I have to run, I left my bags on the train." Gilbert said regretfully. Anne nodded, wishing Gilbert could hold her hands again.

As she turned around to see Gilbert leave, she saw Diana's carriage pull up. "Diana?" Anne breathed as she ran towards the carriage after Gilbert.

**...**

"Can I still be your roommate?" Diana asked as she pulled Anne into an embrace.

"Does this mean you're coming to Queens after all?" She couldn't wait to talk to Diana every night, and pretend that they were sisters.

Anne turned to see Gilbert climb into Mr. Barry's carriage. He had told Gilbert to take the carriage to the train station. Anne was about to say goodbye when Gilbert jumped out of the carriage, and touched his lips to hers, twice, again. She knew Diana and her father were watching, but she didn't care. Her stomach fluttered as Gilbert pulled away with an expression matching her own.

"I'll write to you." They both said together. Anne felt herself blush as Gilbert gave her a grin.

"I have follow up questions!" Anne smiled as Gilbert got into the carriage once again.

Anne watched Gilbert drive away, waving back to him. She clung onto Diana's hand, bursting with happiness. Could this day get any better?


	2. Letters

_Dear Gilbert,_

_I look like my mother. After you left, Marilla and Matthew came with a book that my father gave to my mother. In the back, there was a beautiful portrait of my mother. Oh it was exquisite Gil! She had red hair just like me! I'm starting to think maybe having red hair wouldn't be the bane of my existence. I miss you terribly already, and I know it's wicked to think like that as you're off to fulfill your dreams. I do hope you like Toronto. Be sure to tell me all about it! I cannot wait to see you at Christmas! I know it's quite a long time away, but I suppose it could be worse._

_Lots of love,_

_Anne Shirley-Cuthbert_

"There." Anne sighed happily as she signed her name. "Do you think this is good?" Anne asked as she turned around to face Diano who was sitting on the bed.

"I'm sure it is. That boy would love anything that _you_ wrote," Diana laughed, "He's practically in love with you."

Anne felt a blush creep onto her cheeks. "Just read it."

**...**

_Dear Anne,_

_I've just gotten onto the train and I miss you so much already. I do hope you can come visit me sometime. I'm sure you'll love Toronto. It hasn't got heaps of trees, but it's a huge city! It's like Charlottetown, but so much bigger. I, of course, haven't seen it myself yet. I shall report back to you once I experienced it for myself. _

_How has Queen's been? Is it everything you've ever dreamed? I'm sure you'll love rooming with Diana. Remember to study hard! We may not be attending the same school, but we're still (friendly) rivals! I miss you dearly, and do write back soon._

_Love,_

_Gilbert_

Gilbert sighed. It was times like these that he missed his father the most. He longed for his words of advice. He would have known how to make the letter perfect, and full of love. _This would have to do_.

Gilbert blew over the ink, and folded the paper in half. He would send it as soon as he got to Toronto.

**Thanks for reading! Sorry this chapter was a bit shorter. If you liked it drop a review! Constructive criticism is always welcomed :)**


	3. Joseph

As Gilbert got off the train, he sighed. He wished that Toronto wasn't so far from Avonlea. Nevertheless, he was excited for college.

As Gilbert made his way towards his new room, the door opened. Out walked a tall boy, with honey colored hair that was curly, much like his own.

"Hello." Gilbert nodded respectfully.

"Oh, hi! You must be Gilbert" the boy replied. "I was just going to head down to the post office, you can join me if you'd like!"

"Oh, um, are you my roomate?" Gilbert asked stupidly. He knew the answer of course, the boy had just walked out of his room.

"Yes, I'm Joseph," he said "Put your stuff down, and we can get acquainted on the way to the post office!"

Gilbert was tempted to refuse the offer. He wanted to start reading some books, so he could have some basic information before classes started, but thought better of it. He needed to send his letter to Anne, and he had no clue where the post office was

"Yeah, yes, sure, I'll come." Gilbert mumbled as he struggled to open the door while trying to get his letter from his pocket.

Joseph laughed, but he came over to help him. Finally, after Gilbert had everything situated, the two left for the post office.

"So, why are you going to the post office?" Gilbert asked

"I've got to send a letter to my mother." Joseph replied, clearly annoyed. "Does your mother make you write every week too?"

"Well, no." Gilbert didn't want to make things awkward.

"You're lucky." Joseph sighed, as he scuffed his shoe on the dirt.

Gilbert sighed, he didn't want to keep any secrets from his new friend. "My mother died when she gave birth to me."

Joseph stopped in his tracks. "I am so sorry, I-"

"It's fine," Gilbert smiled weakly "that was a long time ago." "So, what's your mother like?" Gilbert asked, changing the subject.

"Well, um, she's pretty nice I guess." Joseph mumbled, embarrassed. "Who's that letter to then?"

"Er, her name's Anne." Gilbert said, feeling a blush creep onto his cheeks.

"Ah, so you've got yourself a girl back home!" Joseph smiled.

"Well, I wouldn't say she's mine. I mean I guess we are courting, but what I meant was that…" Gilbert was saved by the post office. They had arrived.

Joseph was still laughing at GIlbert, but he lead him inside. Both boys paid for stamps, sent the letters, and headed back towards the dormitories.

**Sorry this took so long to upload! I had it written, but the internet went down :(**

**I'd really appreciate it if you dropped a review if you liked the story!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Diana, do you suppose Gilbert misses me?" Anne asked.

Diana looked surprised. "Why of course!"

"Well, what I mean is, do you think he misses me as much as I miss him?"

"I'm sure he does." Diana said confidently, "Why don't we go head down to the post office to see if there's a letter?"

Anne hesitated. She knew she'd be extremely happy if there was a letter for her, but she'd be crushed if there wasn't. It had been nearly two weeks, so if Gilbert had written a letter as soon as he got to Toronto, the letter _should_ be there. But what if it wasn't? What if Diana was wrong, and he didn't miss Anne at all?

"Anne?" Diana asked, concerned.

"Uh, yeah, let's go." Anne blurted out before even thinking.

Diana smiled, she had secretly been dying to see what Gilbert had written to Anne. Diana took Anne's hand as she practically dragged the redhead out of the little house they were staying in.

…

"Hi, er, is there a letter here for Anne Shirley-Cuthbert?" asked Anne as she approached the small desk of the post office.

"Ah, yes." The man said "I believe so."

Anne's heart soared as Diana nudged her in the side as if to say "I told you so."

The man returned with an envelope and handed it to Anne, but when Anne reached out for it, it was not one letter, but two!

"Thank you." Anne said hurriedly as she and Diana rushed outside to read it.

"Gilbert wrote you _two_ letters?" Diana giggled "I told you he missed you!"

"No, no," laughed Anne, "One of them is from Matthew and Marilla!"

Diana's smile faltered for a moment, but brightened back up. "Oh!" "Well, open it up!"

Anne's fingers fumbled to open Gilbert's letter. Finally, she unfolded the piece of paper and Diana looked over her shoulder to read it.

**(This is the same letter from an earlier chapter, but I've put it in anyway in case you don't remember what was in it)**

_Dear Anne,_

_I've just gotten onto the train and I miss you so much already. I do hope you can come visit me sometime. I'm sure you'll love Toronto. It hasn't got heaps of trees, but it's a huge city! It's like Charlottetown, but so much bigger. I, of course, haven't seen it myself yet. I shall report back to you once I experienced it for myself. _

_How has Queen's been? Is it everything you've ever dreamed? I'm sure you'll love rooming with Diana. Remember to study hard! We may not be attending the same school, but we're still (friendly) rivals! I miss you dearly, and do write back soon._

_Love,_

_Gilbert_

As the two girls hurried home, Anne's smile got bigger and bigger. Gilbert had written to her! _And_ he said he'd written the letter as soon as he got on the train! Oh, how _romantic_! Anne noticed Diana looking at her, and tried to hide her smile, but Anne felt her face flush, and there was no way to hide that.

Anne cleared her throat. "I wonder what Marilla's written."

"Why didn't you open it back at the post office?" Diana smiled.

"Well, I might have forgotten about it while reading Gilbert's letter." Anne blushed once again.

...

When Anne and Diana had returned to the cozy abode, Anne plopped down onto the bed to read Marilla's letter.

_Dear Anne,_

_How is Queen's? I meant to write you earlier, but Mrs. Lynde caught a cold. She's better now, so no need for you to worry. Just focus on your studies. Green Gables is very quiet without you and we miss you dearly. Matthew hasn't been himself, but he'll come around. He wanted me to ask you if you could come visit over the weekend soon. I told him that you should stay and study, but he insisted. I hate to ask this, but did everything work out with Gilbert? I thought I saw him on our way to show you the book, but it could be my old eyes. I thought he was in Toronto! _

_Anyways, I hope you are doing well, and that you haven't been staying up all night reading that book, although I wouldn't blame you if you had._

_Love from,_

_Matthew and Marilla_

**I feel like this chapter was kind of rushed, but I wanted to post something. Things have been very busy recently so sorry for the irregular updates. Drop a review if you enjoyed it!**


	5. Coffee

"You haven't told Marilla about Gilbert?" Diana asked.

"No, I suppose not." Anne said "I must have forgotten to!" "I'll write them right away."

As Anne settled down to write her letter, Diana flipped through the pages of the book Matthew and Marilla had given Anne.

...

The light blinded Gilbert as he woke, and momentarily, he forgot he wasn't back in Avonlea.

"So you're finally up!" Joseph laughed.

_Finally?_ Gilbert turned to look at the clock. _Did I oversleep_?

"Relax, I'm just teasing," Joseph chuckled "Classes don't start for another hour."

Gilbert jumped out of bed, and scrambled to find his books. He had meant to get up early to look through his books before class. He didn't want to be behind. _An hour_! That wasn't nearly enough time!

"Whoa, I said you had an hour!" Joseph exclaimed as he watched Gilbert desperately flipping through his books.

"I need to get an overview of the lesson before the class starts." the boy said as he composed himself.

"Yeah, you don't need to do that." "You don't do anything in the first class." Joseph told him.

"You don't?"

"Nope." "It's mainly just getting everything organized, and if the professor's nice, they'll tell you about the school."

"I should still just re-"

"Oh, come on!" Joseph laughed "College is supposed to be fun, you can't enjoy the experience if you're cooped up everyday reading your books!" "Let's go down to the cafe and get some coffee."

Gilbert reluctantly put down his books as he followed Joseph out of the dorm.

"So I take it this isn't your first year at U of T?" Gilbert asked.

"Well, it is, but my older brother went here before I did, so I guess I know more about it than most students."

Gilbert wondered what it'd be like if he had an older brother. Would his father's passing been more bearable that way? Would he have even come to college if he had a brother?

As the two boys entered the cafe, Joseph turned to Gilbert. "Ever had coffee before?"

"No, I don't think so." "Is it like tea?"

Joseph grinned and turned to a girl behind a counter. "Two coffees please."

"Hey!" Gilbert started to say.

"You're missing out if you haven't tried coffee."

Gilbert rolled his eyes, but he reached into his pocket for some coins.

"Too late, I've already paid." Joseph grinned.

Gilbert opened his mouth to protest, but like Joseph had pointed out, it was too late. "Fine, I'm paying next time though." he frowned.

…

The two boys sat down at a table next to a large window. There were vines growing on the outside wall, and you could see the leaves peaking through the clear glass.

"Go on, try it." Joseph smirked.

Gilbert raised the mug to his lips and took a sip. He almost spit it out after he had tasted the bitter drink.

"What is this?!" Gilbert cried.

"Add some milk and sugar, it will help." Joseph laughed. "The black coffee's an acquired taste." Joseph wriggled his eyebrows at him.

Gilbert, once again, rolled his eyes, and poured in plenty of milk and sugar.


End file.
